WARWICK – In his four decades in manufacturing, Dave Marquis has seen a lot of changes within the industry.
Along with technology advances, Marquis – co-owner and president of Lincoln-based ornament maker ChemArt Co. and 2024 Strategic Leadership Award winner in Providence Business News’ annual Manufacturing Awards program – said in his speech Wednesday that he spent most of his career gaining a better understanding of people and what drives them.
Marquis said some lessons he learned include keeping egos in check, which can make people more approachable and “shows that you’re human.” Approachability, he said, is a key part in running a business.
He also said people need to listen to the message and not the messenger, especially if there are two major conflicting viewpoints.
“What I found is if you can get by [feeling defensive and angry] and make the conversation continue, you can find out a lot of things,” Marquis said. “Most of the time there’s a point of view on both sides. If you listen, you can learn a lot and gain an advantage.”
Ted Williams, president of North Kingstown-based shipbuilder Senesco Marine LLC who was named the 2024 Manufacturing Champion, said in a video message that shipbuilding across the U.S. is “back on its heels” and the industry is trying to rebuild it after losing many capabilities over the past half century. He also said shipbuilding production in the U.S. is far behind other countries, such as China which builds about 1,000 ships per year compared with the U.S. building between just 10 to 12.
“Senesco looks to be an iatrical part of increasing and enhancing shipbuilding in the U.S. to rebuild our military and our commercial fleet,” said Williams, who is currently in New Orleans as one of Senesco’s ships was nominated for Boat of the Year at the 2024 International WorkBoat Show.
Marquis and Williams were among 24 total honorees – 12 program honorees and 12 special “Meet the Makers” honorees – recognized Wednesday for their efforts in the manufacturing sector both in Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts. About 230 people attended the awards dinner held at the Crowne Plaza Providence-Warwick.
A special section highlighting all the honorees will publish in PBN’s Nov. 22-Dec. 5 print edition.
The 10 other companies and organizations honored Wednesday were:
- AVTECH Software Inc., for Overall Excellence at a Small Manufacturer
- Tanury Industries, for Overall Excellence at a Large Manufacturer
- Amgen Rhode Island, for Overall Excellence at an Enterprise Manufacturer
- Community College of Rhode Island, for Excellence in Workforce Development & Productivity
- William M. Davies Jr. Career & Technical High School, for Excellence in Collaboration
- Igus Bearings Inc., for Excellence in Product Innovation & Design
- Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence, for Excellence in Lean Management
- Atlantic Paper & Supply, for Manufacturing Supplier
- Axiotrop LLC, for Manufacturing Service Provider
- Hungry Ghost Press, for Emerging Manufacturer
Also on Wednesday, the awards program honored 12 manufacturers in the “Meet the Makers” category, recognizing the companies’ in producing goods both locally and beyond.
The 12 honorees were:
- AquasGroup
- Atlas Barrell & Pallet Inc.
- Bel Air Finishing Supply Corp.
- Crisloid LLC
- Eco Global Manufacturing LLC
- International Packaging Corp.
- Orbit Motion Systems
- Plants to Food LLC
- S&P Heat Treating Inc.
- Snow Findings Co.
- Wardwell Braiding Inc.
- Wright’s Dairy Farm Inc.
Polaris MEP is the presenting sponsor for PBN’s 2024 Manufacturing Awards program. Amgen Rhode Island, Citrin Cooperman & Co. LP and Gallo | Thomas Insurance are the partner sponsors.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on X at @James_Bessette.